


Devil Child Redux

by not_a_duccc



Category: Mother 4, Oddity (Video Game)
Genre: Abuse, Angst, Blood and Gore, Domestic Violence, Friendship, Implied/Referenced Child Abuse, Religion, Religious Conflict, Religious Content, Rivalry, Violence
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-10-28
Updated: 2020-10-28
Packaged: 2021-03-08 19:02:08
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 3
Words: 4,861
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27251641
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/not_a_duccc/pseuds/not_a_duccc
Summary: This is a rewrite of a fan fic from my old FanFiction.net account. I hate the original story, but figured the idea would be worth revisiting. This is a one shot, but will include bonus material such old drafts, and the original FanFiction.net version.SynopsisHaving been left to a caring mother and abusive father, Meryl has seen a lot of hardship in her life. Today, however, she reaches her breaking point, bringing about an event that will change her life forever.
Kudos: 1





	1. Redux

The closet smells like old salt. It’s cold and dark and here. It feels like the walls are closing in. No matter how hard I bash against the door or scream for help no one comes for me.

“HELP!!! SOMEBODY HELP ME!!!

I’m scared. I want my mommy.

“MOM!!!”

Nothing. The only response I ever get is prayer. The same prayer, the same voice, every single time.

“Our father, who art in heaven, hallowed be thy name…”

My dad probably has this prayer burned into his memory by now. Sometimes mom joins him if he forces her too. 

“Harold stop!”

“God dammit woman, PRAY!!! Do you want the devil in this house!?!?”

“That’s our daughter!”

“And the devil has taken a hold of her! Have you seen what Meryl can do!? She nearly burned a child’s face off! She froze another one’s arm and brought lightning down on the local church!”

“Those were accidents Harold! She didn’t mean any of it!”

“Shut your mouth woman! How do I know you’re not a witch like her!?!?”

The praying stopped. I can’t see what was happening, but it sounds like dad is hitting mom again. I have tears streaming down my face. I’m still screaming and bashing my fists against the door. The walls are closing in faster. I’m so scared. I just want to get out of here.

One of my fists goes through the door. It’s engulfed in flames, but I don’t feel the heat. It tears down the door with minimal effort, leaving next to nothing but ashes and a few wood chips. Mom is on the floor, and dad is repeatedly punching her in the face. When he turns around to face me I feel something wash over me. I think about everything he’s done. All the night’s I spent alone in the cold closet, the amount of times mom has gone to the hospital because of him, I hate him. I hate him so much.

I tackled my dad to the ground and dug my nails into his eyeballs, I can feel how squishy they are, and the sloshing the sounds they make as I dig through them, letting his blood coat my fingers. I focus on that sound to try and drown out his screams. He flails arms and legs around aimlessly to try and find his footing. I grab both of his arms and encase them in ice, freezing them to the ground. My hands aren’t on fire anymore, they feel a bit cooler. I start punching my dad, punching him as hard as I can each time. I feel the impact of every blow, but I don’t feel any pain. I’m only focusing on the screams. It gives me a sense of power. I keep hitting him and hitting him and hitting him. It feels good. My fist is on fire now, leaving burns on his face everytime I hit him. My other hand is digging into his leg.

The screaming stops, but I keep going. I just want to keep hitting him. I hate him. His face is practically unrecognizable, but I keep going. I hate him. Mom is lying dead next to me. I hate him. I hate him I hate him I hate him I hate him I hate him I hate him I hate him I hate him I hate him I hate him I hate him I hate him I hate him I hate him I hate him I hate him I hate him I hate him I hate him I hate him I hate him I hate him I hate him I hate him I hate him I hate him I hate him I hate him I hate him I hate him. 

There’s no more screaming to focus on, I start to focus on my own breathing. I realize I’m getting tired. I stop punching the remains of my dad. At least I think it’s my dad, I can’t tell anymore. All I can think about was the rush of adrenaline, how it felt to take away the life of another person. I look at my hands. One is relatively clean, but the other is covered in blood.

What have I done?

Did I always want to hurt people? Even if it was an accident when I burned and froze those kids, it felt good, I wanted to do it again. Sure, my dad was awful, but should I really have killed him? Did I kill him because he was awful, or did I kill him because I wanted to feel the rush of blood in my body, the feeling of my fist colliding with someone’s flesh, watching their face become permanently scared when I burn them. 

I don’t know what I’m doing anymore. I’m so scared. I just want my mom back. I can’t help but cry, that’s all I can ever do when I don’t know what to do. When dad would lock me in the closet, I cried. When he chained me to a bed and had a priest throw holy water at me and spout meaningless words, I cried. Whenever mom went to the hospital, I cried. And now I cry in front of my mom’s lifeless body. I couldn’t save her. I have my hands in my face, allowing my tears to run through my hand. There’s a fire that’s spreading around the house now, but I don’t feel it. My body heat is through the roof, yet as the flames engulf my body I feel almost colder than I was before.

I focus on the sound of the crackling fire, it distracts me from everything else that is happening. By the time I’m done crying, the house is gone. Nothing but embers and ashes. I can hear sirens getting closer. Are they police? Medics? Firefighters? I wasn’t sure, and was too scared to stay there and find out, because either way they would ask me what happened. How the house burned down, why I was unharmed, what happened to my parents. I decided to run away, fearing what they might do to me.

\- 4 YEARS LATER -

I just got out of school, and now I’m sitting under a tree by a little cave area. I usually come here after school to do work or just to relax and get some alone time, in this case it was homework. I had my notebook in my lap, there’s some blood stains on it. I always get into the fight’s with the other kids, but I’m getting better at holding back now. It’s not like I have a choice anyway, I’m surprised I haven’t been run out of this town with the few times I have used my powers. That alone has been enough to make me a social outcast. I can’t go a few feet without scaring someone off, or someone calling me freak. Whatever, I don’t need anyone, I’m better off by myself. I can’t trust anyone around here.

“H-hey…”

I look up and see this boy standing over me. I’ve never seen him before, he’s probably new here. He’s got brown and curly hair, some jeans, and a green varsity jacket that’s clearly too big for him. 

“What the hell do you want,” I said.

“O-oh, um, my name is Travis… uh, I heard you have some… powers.”

“And who told you that?”

“Some of the other kids told me when I came here.”

“So what, are you here to make fun of me or to pick a fight?”

“N-n-neither! I-”

Before he could finish, I took my shot and clocked him in the face. He flew off a few feet away from me, landing on his back. That should get him to leave me alone. I picked my notebook back up to do work, but someone tapped on my shoulder.

“Uh, hi again.”

What the hell!? He was perfectly fine! How the hell could he take a hit like that!? I wasn’t gonna take my chances after that. I cloaked my fist in flames and-

“Ow! What the hell!?”

My fist hurts like a bitch. I ended up punching some kind of barrier. Travis had his arms out in front of him, with his head down and eyes shut tight in fear. It seemed like he made the barrier, but that can’t be it, right? There isn’t anyone else out there like me, at least that’s what I assumed. Travis lifted his head up, but was still hesitant to look completely forward.

“Look I don’t want to hurt you,” he said, “I just wanted to talk!”

“Talk my ass! You wanna come in here and try and take me on!? Hah! You and your fancy shmancy barriers don’t scare me!”

For the moment, my mind was blank, I was relying only on my instincts. I just kept swinging my fists till I hit him, but I almost never did. He kept putting up shields and refused to fight back, and it was really starting to piss me off. I could feel myself reaching my boiling point, all my powers were starting to come out at once. My fists were cloaked with flames, I felt the ground freezing beneath my feet every time I took a step, and I could feel the electricity crackling through my body. This one boy was the match in the powder barrel that finally set me off, and I was too far in to stop now. Even as I threw everything I had at him, Travis still wouldn’t fight back.

All the use of powers was starting to take a toll on me. No matter how many punches I threw, how many fireballs I threw, how many icicles I stabbed with, or how many times I struck lightning on him, his resolve never broke. The adrenaline from being able to let loose like this was intoxicating, so even though I knew I couldn’t break him, I couldn’t stop if I tried. I haven’t used my powers in a while, and using them this much was putting a strain on my mind. My head was pounding like it was about to break out of my skull. Eventually I gave up on trying to fight Travis. I collapsed on the ground and held my hand to my head.

“H-hey… are you okay?”

“Do I look okay asshole?”

“O-oh, sorry…”

I sighed, this boy was too innocent for his own good. “Ugh, don’t be sorry,” I said. Travis extended his hand out to me to help me up. I took his offer, but weirdly enough his hand started glowing a bit, and my head started to clear up. It still hurt a bit, but it wasn’t nearly as bad as before. “Do you feel any better,” asked Travis. I just nodded my head, I didn’t really feel like responding. 

“So uh, can we talk?”

“Ugh, fine. What do you want?”

“Uh, I just strolled into town, and I heard some of the kids talking about you and I uh-”

“Look just get to the point, what do you want me to do? If it involves killing or torturing go find someone else.”

“N-no! Nothing like that! I- I wanted you to train me!”

“… What?”

“All the kids are scared of you, so I figured that meant you were really strong, so I uh, hoped you could help me with my powers… and uh, maybe be friends?”

I was dumbfounded. What kind of dumbass’ first thought is to ask the one everyone hates for help, let alone be friends? I wasn’t sure if I should be flattered or ask him if he had a few screws loose.

“Uh… thanks? I don’t know if I can help you with the whole powers thing, but I guess I can teach you how to fight?”

Why did I even say that? I don’t know this kid, for all I know he could have some other motive for asking me for help. He seems pretty genuine though, I guess it couldn’t hurt to teach him a few things. He suddenly grabbed my hand and started shaking it. “Oh, thank you so much,” he said with enthusiasm, “I promise I’ll make it up to you eventually!”

“Uh, yeah. Don’t mention it… what does a guy like you need to learn how to fight for anyway?”

“Oh you know, fighting demons, aliens, and all kinds of weirdos. That’s what psychics do, right?”

“Uhh… not that I know of.”

“O-oh. Well, that’s what I do at least.”

“Right…”

“Uh, yeah… well, uh, I’ll see you later then! I’ll be at the hotel whenever you're ready to train me!”

“Okay then… uh, see you later.”

We met up again later in the day. I tried to show him some basic combat moves, he was actually already pretty capable of defending himself, since he keeps putting up barriers around himself. We talked for a bit, found out we had some common interests, aside from the whole psychic thing. Travis said something about stopping some interdimensional business men from harvesting our planet for resources. Honestly I have no idea what he’s talking about, but if it means getting some action and fighting people who are actually capable I might tag along. He seems pretty chill, I forgot how nice it is to just talk with people.

I don’t want to get too attached, but… maybe I could learn to like this guy.


	2. Time Skip: First Draft

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> I say this is a draft, but this is really a completely different version of the time skip half of the fic. Personally I don't like it, but I know I few people who did like it, so I figured I would put it in here.

\- 2 YEARS LATER -

I just got out of school, and now I’m sitting under a tree by a little cave area. I usually come here after school to do work or just to relax and get some alone time, in this case it was homework. I had my notebook in my lap, there’s some blood stains on it. I always get into the fight’s with the other kids, but I’m getting better at holding back now. After what happened 2 years ago, I try not to use my powers against other people, only to scare them off. There are times where I don’t want to hold back, but I know I have to if I want to keep living a somewhat normal life.

“H-hey…”

I look up and see this boy standing over me. I’ve never seen him before, he’s probably new here. He’s got brown and curly hair, some jeans, and a green varsity jacket that’s clearly too big for him. 

“What the hell do you want?”

“O-oh, um, my name is Travis… uh, I heard you have some… powers.”

“And who told you that?”

“Some of the other kids told me when I came here.”

“So what, are you here to make fun of me or to pick a fight?”

“N-n-neither! I just wanted t-to show you something.”

“Pfft, what the hell do you you mean sho-”

Before I could finish my sentence, my notebook started floating in the air. I noticed Travis had his hand extending out slightly. After spinning it around a bit, he dropped it back in my lap, and sat down on the ground across from me. 

“… You’re like me…”

“Yeah! The other kids say you’re really strong! I, uh, was hoping you could teach me a few things. I-if that’s okay with you though!”

“I uh… I don’t have powers like that, but I guess I could help you with fighting if that’s what you’re looking for.”

Why did I even say that? I don’t know this kid, for all I know he could have some other motive for asking me for help. He seems pretty genuine though, I guess it couldn’t hurt to teach him a few things. He suddenly grabbed my hand and started shaking it. “Oh, thank you so much,” he said with enthusiasm, “I promise I’ll make it up to you eventually!”

“Uh, yeah. Don’t mention it… what does a guy like you need to learn how to fight for anyway?”

“Oh you know, fighting demons, aliens, and all kinds of weirdos. That’s what psychics do, right?”

“Uhh… not that I know of.”

“O-oh. Well, that’s what I do at least.”

“Right…”

“Uh, yeah… well, uh, I’ll see you later then! I’ll be at the hotel whenever you're ready to train me!”

“Uh, we can start now if you want. I’m, uh, not really busy right now.”

“O-oh! Thank you so much, uh, what was your name again?”

“Meryl… just Meryl.”

I was gonna turn in my homework late anyway. I tried to show him some basic combat moves, he was actually already pretty capable of defending himself, since he keeps putting up barriers around himself. We talked for a bit, found out we had some common interests, and Travis said something about stopping some interdimensional business men from harvesting our planet for resources. Honestly I have no idea what he’s talking about, but if it means getting some action and fighting people who are actually capable I might tag along. So much for living a normal life. Plus he seems pretty chill, I forgot how nice it is to just talk with people.

I guess what I’m saying is, for the first time since I’ve lost mom, I don’t feel so alone.


	3. Original Version

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> This is the original FanFiction.net version of the fic. I REALLY don't like it, but I wanted to archive it at least.
> 
> Original Synopsis  
> The Citrus Hills psychic, Meryl, has gone from loved to hated in no time at all. At a time in her life where her only way of coping is aggression for attention, a young boy helps her feel a little less alone in the world. (Based on the fan game formally known as Mother 4).

Meryl lied in her bed daydreaming. She wasn’t thinking about anything in particular, she simply allowed her mind to cling onto any stray thoughts that drifted through her subconscious. It was a feeling she wasn’t accustomed to, since she was usually always doing something with her time. However, Meryl snapped back to reality when a drop of holy water had found its way into her eye.

_ Oh right. I’m being exorcised. _

Even with the priest’s around her chanting various Bible verses, she found tuning them out to be easy. Meryl quickly found herself lost in thought once more, this time about everything that brought her to this moment. 

From the moment she was born, Meryl became a local celebrity. She found it flattering being called names such as “The Purple Princess” or “The Virtuous Violet,” but public perception on her changed rather quickly when she became 10 years old. Meryl’s 10th birthday landed on a school day, and the bully of her class was in a particularly foul mood that day. Up until this point Meryl had never picked a fight with anyone, and if that bully hadn’t spontaneously combusted, the event may have been passed off as Meryl developing a rebellious strike. Instead it would be a day of sorrow for the bully’s family, and the day Meryl’s life was flipped on its head.

Now Meryl found herself being called much less flattering names. “Witch,” “freak,” “monster,” and even “devil child” on more than one occasion. In an instant she went from being adored to being public enemy number one. It would not be the last time Meryl would pick a fight either. Soon she found ways to hone her abilities, using them for self defense and just causing general mischief. What everyone focused on however, was the fact she had these powers to begin with. The town of Citrus Hills ran wild with rumors on what granted Meryl these supernatural abilities. Many linked her purple hair to these powers, so even that was no longer safe from ridicule. It was generally accepted, however, that Meryl was the victim of some kind of demonic possession. It would explain her supernatural powers and sudden hostility. What they didn’t know was that Meryl had been gifted with psychic abilities, and she chose to misuse them feeling there would be no consequences.

In one sense, Meryl was right about there being no consequences. Never once was she reprimanded by a teacher, her parents, or any figure of authority. Even the law refused to do anything about her. On the other hand, however, the true consequence came in her reputation being completely destroyed. No longer would she be greeted by warm smiles from the townspeople, instead she was met with fear and hostility from them. Meryl believed she was on top of the world and that people would admire her for her abilities and what she could do with them. In the end though, she got the exact opposite of what she wanted. Now she was feared by her own parents, forcing them to turn to a ritual shunned by the very people who created it.

Meryl never knew where her powers had come from, and she almost didn’t want to know. All she knew was that they were likely not demonic in nature, if the ineffectiveness of the exorcism was anything to go by. When the ritual had finally ended, Meryl wasn’t even aware it had. She allowed her thoughts to lull her to sleep. 

The next day seemed like any other day. Meryl attended school, this time even more aware of how much everyone feared her. She was truly alone, with no one by her side to comfort her, as they all feared she would lash out in response. This didn’t stop Meryl from going with her usual routine, however. She still went to the same tree she would always go to read whatever comic book she picked off the newsstand, hiding said comic with whatever book her class happened to be reading at the time. This would have been like any other day, if not for the appearance of an unfamiliar face.

“Hi! Can I sit with you?”

Meryl had never seen this boy before. He seemed slightly younger than her, and shorter than her to boot. His hair was unkempt but it somehow suited him. His attire consisted of green striped tee-shirt, denim jeans, and a pair of dirty red sneakers. His smile carried a very warm and genuine demeanor, he actually wanted to have a conversation.

“Sure, I guess.”

Meryl wasn’t sure how to feel. She couldn’t even remember the last time someone had tried to talk to her was, outside of when she picked fights. The boy plopped down on the ground next to her, and the awkward silence quickly settled in. 

“So… what’s your name?”

“Meryl.”

“Oh cool. Uh, my name is Travis.”

Travis had a friendly demeanor, but was clearly not a social type. He frequently struggled to find the right words to say which led to a lot of “ums” and “uhs” that never led anywhere. Still, he made an effort to keep the conversation going.

“So um, whatcha reading?”

“X-Men.”

“Really? I read that too! Can I see which issue you're reading?”

“Oh, sure I guess.”

Travis was clearly an avid fan, as immediately recognized the issue and proceeded to point out a lot of little details Meryl had not noticed. It was almost charming hearing him talk so passionately about a simple comic book.

“I guess I rambled for a bit, uh sorry.”

“Oh, it’s okay! It was kinda fun hearing you analyze it like that.”

“Oh uh, thank you.”

Quickly the awkward silence returned. If it had gone on for a minute longer, Meryl would have walked away, but Travis’ still persisted in talking.

“I like your hair.”

“I, uh, thank you… your hair is nice too ya know.”

“Pfft, yeah right. I don’t even brush it, it just kinda stays there, gradually getting poofier.”

“Well it works on you. My hair isn’t even a normal color, at least your hair is brown.”

“Well there’s nothing wrong with dyeing your hair! I think your hair looks great.”

“Huh? Oh right you don’t know.”

“Don’t know what?”

“This isn’t dyed, it’s natural.”

For a brief moment Travis stood awestruck. Meryl had not expected him to believe her like that, especially while giving a reaction like that. Travis’ immediate acceptance to this made Meryl chuckle.

“Wait really!?”

“Yeah, hehe. I don’t know why, I was just born this way.”

“That’s so cool! Actually, I have something I was born with too!”

“Really? Can I see?”

“You promise not to tell anyone?”

“Why, what is it?”

“Uh, just watch!”

Travis was seemingly scanning the area for other people, making sure no one watched what he was about to do. He saw a small bird in front of them and stuck his right hand out.

Travis tried PK Flash!

A blinding flash of light came from Travis’ hand. In an instant, the bird in front of him was completely paralyzed. “Paralysis again,” Travis muttered to himself. Travis turned to Meryl only to notice that she was bawling her eyes out. Meryl wasn’t even sure why she was crying, she simply couldn’t help herself. 

“Oh no, oh no, I messed up! Uh, take my hand!”

“Wh-what?”

“Just do it!”

Meryl placed her hand in Travis’ palm, expecting nothing in particular to happen. 

Travis tried Healing β!

A soft green light emanated from Travis’ hand. The tears had stopped, and Meryl felt her throat begin to clear up. 

“What happened?”

“I-I’m sorry! I didn’t think Flash would affect you too, I guess the light is bigger than I thought. But I healed your crying though!”

“Yeah you did… thank you.”

“Uh, no problem! Maybe I should just try a less dangerous technique, watch this!”

Travis stood up this time, placing his right index and middle finger on his forehead and extending his left hand. 

Travis tried Shield α!

An orb made from a soft blue light suddenly enveloped Travis. Seeing this made Meryl’s eyes widen, as she finally realized what was going on.

“You’re… you’re like me.”

“Huh?”

“You’re like me! I can do stuff like that too! Watch!”

Meryl put down her book and got up excitedly. She closed her hands together and stuck out both her index and middle fingers and thumbs to create finger guns. She aimed her hands at a lone bush.

Meryl tried PK Fire α!

A small spark let loose from fingertips and found its way to the bush she was pointing at, lighting it on fire. Travis watched in amazement, even having powers himself he had never seen anything like what Meryl did.

“That was so cool! Even I can’t do that! What else can you do!?”

“Uh, I can freeze things, and make lightning strike sometimes.”

“Woah! That sounds awesome!”

“Uh, hehe, thanks.”

For the first time in a long time, Meryl was receiving admiration, and it felt good, but not quite the same. She could tell Travis truly meant everything he said to her, it made his compliments resonate with her more. Meryl didn’t dwell on Travis’ kindness for long though, as she had many other things he wished to ask him. 

“So you were really born with your powers?”

“Yeah! At least I think I was, I didn’t start noticing them till I was 10.”

“I was the same way. I didn’t even know I had powers till my 10th birthday!”

“Woah, now that’s a coincidence.”

“Hehe yeah, I guess so. So where are you from, Travis? I don’t think I’ve ever seen you around before.”

“Oh I came from Belring actually.”

“Belring? That’s pretty far, how did you even get here?”

“I just walked here. I’m not sure why though, it’s like something is calling me here, something I can’t explain. Whatever it is I want to find it and hopefully go back home.”

“Well that sounds important, do you have an idea of where to go?”

“I think I feel whatever force is compelling me to come here somewhere around this area, but I can’t seem to find it. I might just call it a day and check in at the hotel at this rate.”

“Oh yeah, it’s getting late. I should go home soon…”

“Oh you should, right… I guess I’ll see you around?”

“Right back ya, hehe…”

That would have been the end of it Meryl hadn’t remembered one more question she wanted to ask. She quickly turned back around to yell at Travis.

“Hey, wait!”

“Huh?”

“Why did you stop to talk to me anyway?”

“Oh! I, uh, well, I, you-”

“I what?”

“You seemed lonely and… I don’t know, I guess I was hoping I could cheer you up and we could be… friends.”

Meryl wasn’t sure how to react. Not only had she found someone that was accepting of her powers, but they genuinely wanted to be friends as well. It all felt rather surreal to her, but she wasn’t about to complain.

“Oh, yeah dude! We can be friends! And uh, thanks for trying to help, that was sweet of you.”

“Oh! Hahaha, thanks! I guess I’ll see you later then?”

“Yeah! Maybe I can see you tomorrow and help you find that important something that brought you here.”

“Sounds good to me!”

“Alright then! We’ll meet back here tomorrow afternoon, right?”

“Yep! Now I’ve gotta get to that hotel! See you later!”

“Bye!”

As Meryl watched Travis run off, she felt a certain warmth inside her. She had never met a boy like Travis until now. Someone so awkward yet so charming, someone who carried such a strong aura of kindness, and who shared similar abilities to her own. Meryl grabbed her book and ran home, eagerly awaiting the next day. 

For the first time in a long time, Meryl no longer felt alone.


End file.
